And the Darkness Consumes All
by purduepup
Summary: TWO-SHOT; AU. After Kagome went blind, Inuyasha made it his duty to take care of her. Now wedded, he never leaves her alone—that is, until tonight, when Kagome gets an ominous feeling. Will he save her in time and will this event help or kill their love?
1. Part I

_Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. Plain and simple._

_A/N: I'm supposed to be writing my other stories. Obviously, I fail. -.-' But, I didn't spend my time typing this—this is actually an old report from my eighth grade English class in which I have edited to fit the _InuYasha _fandom. It's been rated "T" because of the suspense and some mentionings of inappropriate things not meant for children's eyes, and the first part shall be in KAGOME 1ST PERSON POV. This is my first two-shot, and I hope you guys will enjoy it! :D_

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**And the Darkness Consumes All**

_Two-Shot_

_**Part I**_

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The knife slammed down on the counter, cutting the food article my husband said would go to waste if we didn't use it soon. I could hear him whistling through his deep breathing just a few feet away, like cutting food was just as tiring as moving around living room furniture. I tried to imagine him in my mind—the only part of me that could see images and remember what it felt like to have twenty-twenty vision. Inuyasha probably still had the same silver-white hair, I thought, hanging behind his back in that familiar way. His eyes most likely remained golden, with honey interiors, topaz outlines, and amber lines around his pupils. That was the first thing I'd noticed about him—his eyes—the first thing that had caught my attention. When I still had my vision—before The Loss occurred, the morning when I woke up and my vision had turned from mostly blurry to completely blank—I could look into those eyes and never think about anything but how unique they were. There was mystery hidden deep inside those eyes, a personal secret I wanted—needed—to unfold to truly know him. But even after I went blind and we were married, it seemed I could never reach my goal. Inuyasha still remained a brick wall with a heavy metal gate, his eyes the only key through. But I couldn't see any part of him anymore, at the least anything else.

I began stirring some soft, hot, mashed food—the meal we always had on Sunday nights—that was probably in a big pot similar to what Inuyasha pointed out once before The Loss. I could feel the heat floating around in the air, beating against my face rapidly, and stuffing my nose with steam. It was as if the food had somehow turned into a gas and was trying to suffocate me with all its might, using my blindness and its newfound matter against me. The heat burnt my face like a wrestler slapped me while I had the worst sunburn on Earth. It made my nose twitch and my lips moist, but most importantly, the steam caused my hair to grow damp and begin sticking to my face as if I was sweating horribly. Inuyasha says whenever he stirs the food, he experiences what I do, except for his eyeballs also burn alive, even through his eyelids when he shuts his eyes tightly. I suppose that's why I was always assigned to the duty of stirring the food: because Inuyasha suffered more than I did when keeping our heads above the burning pot. Well, that and I shouldn't be using knives to cut food when I can't even see where the cutting board is. I loved my fingers, thank you very much.

I detested my disadvantage—my vision loss—because it somehow always made me feel like Inuyasha was above me; almost as if I should depend on him to be there at every waking moment. To tell the truth, ever since I was diagnosed with blindness in our senior year, it seemed he'd been at my side the entire time, like a dog guiding blind people around town. (Honestly, I would've gotten one of those dogs if I hadn't been allergic. Instead I was cursed with my then boyfriend, current husband, who was ironically half–dog demon, though thankfully didn't stir my allergies.) Before we graduated high school, he had changed all of his classes just so he could help me move around school and assist me constantly. I was a defenseless princess and he was my bodyguard. While he was at work in the office, I walked—actually, he dragged and led me as he jogged—around with him wherever he went, whether it meant a trip to the copying room or to the staff lounge. Every one of his coworkers greeted us as a couple, and some even talked to me as if I were a child when we weren't in a hurry to get things done. After one year of bringing me to his work and losing track of me eleven times, Inuyasha had placed a beeper on me in case he ever lost me. This is what I have to say about that: "Hey, this is Kagome Higurashi. I'm sorry you can't find me, but if you please just press the red button on the device you're holding, you'll find me as soon as possible. Just wait for the beep… _Beep._" That thing would be the death of me.

Inuyasha was extremely overprotective of me. Every decision he made probably revolved around my safety and wellbeing. He wouldn't let me ride any amusement park attractions, fearful that I might not buckle myself correctly or would fall out of the vehicle by accident. I couldn't take my once daily jogs alone in the woods anymore because he was afraid I'd get lost, hurt, mugged, raped, beaten, eaten, or killed. It seemed I could never be alone without hearing his voice nearby or the annoying _beep _coming from my jeans' back pocket. It was sad because I could only paint and be inspired when I was alone. But then again, I gave up that dream after one year when I came to the conclusion that artists needed their sight to be successful.

It was because of this overprotective quality that made me freeze once I heard the knife being slid back into its drawer. I heard his footsteps as he crossed the room, past me and towards the garage door. He was most likely shuffling around for his jacket; I could hear the fabrics scraping against one another as he searched for the coat under what must have been a dozen clothing articles. I realized he'd founded it once there was a pause to the scraping but then was continued.

I stopped stirring, leaving the spoon in its position while I walked towards the noise. It was somewhere to the left of the stove—that I could easily distinguish—but I wondered if our house even had a foyer before the garage door. If we did have a foyer, was it in there? As I felt around for my own jacket, I asked, "Where're we going? What about the food?"

"_I'm _going to the store," he said, point-blank, but I could imagine his eyebrow rising at my questions. "We ran out of flour, milk, and eggs."

"What are we making?" I asked. Besides the stuff in the pot—what was its name?—and what he was cutting up—probably vegetables, if we were following our usual routine—what else did he have in mind? I still was feeling around for my coat, but could only sense the cold, hard drywall surrounding us in every room we entered. And once I found something different than the wall, instead of a soft fleece material, I felt a solid, smooth surface. _Where is that coat?_

"Cake," Inuyasha answered, as if I should've known all along. "Remember, 'Gome? It's for Rin's sixth birthday party."

I didn't know any of this. For a moment, my mind grew blank as I tried to remember who Rin was. Normally, I could only identify people by their voice, facial features, breathing pattern, or appearance, but ever since The Loss, depending on my eyes was mostly useless. The only senses I could rely on now were touch, smell, hearing, and taste. But it was weird to taste or smell someone, so I mostly depended on the air and atmosphere shifting, feeling people's faces, and memorizing how their lungs worked with both breathing and oral sound such as talking, humming, and singing.

After a short moment of silence, Inuyasha added, "Rin—our niece. The one you said had a small face and cleft chin with model-like lips?" I suddenly recalled the details I would notice and take note of after feeling someone's face. But before I could say anything, my husband added, "You know—my half-brother, half-bastard Sesshoumaru adopted kid and your sister Kikyou's blood daughter?"

Oh. Sesshoumaru and Kikyou. I couldn't believe that I didn't remember Rin was their daughter. Well, _had _been _her_ daughter. All I could manage to wheeze was "Oh. I see."

He sighed, sounding exhausted from just explaining who Rin was. He also brought the topic of my sister becoming a statistic of breast cancer after Rin had been born. That, and also reminding me that my niece no longer had a mother to take care for her, but only a middle-aged father who'd adopted her. Oh, and how I never was able to actually see my sister for one last time before she died, holding my hand tight, but her grip loosening as her heart stopped beating. Then her hand turned cold, and the life that had returned ever since The Loss disappeared along with her spirit.

Inuyasha must've realized I was in deep thought. Instead of asking for assurance that I was fine, he whispered, "I'll go now, okay?"

I chased away thoughts of Kikyou as his words sunk in. "Aren't I coming along?" Anxiety flowed through my blood at the thought of being alone for the first time in a long time. I was going, too, wasn't I?

"No," he said, sounding baffled by why I would even ask that. "I need someone to stay here and cook dinner. If we both leave, no one will be able to make sure the dumplings don't burn in the pot." Ah, so that was what I stirring. He concluded, "I'll be back in less than one hour."

I heard the door open and close, then the garage door follow. More air had entered the room since Inuyasha left, fiving me an empty feeling that I didn't want to greet so warmly. The car engine started roughly, but softened as he drove away from the house, the garage, our dinner, and—most importantly—me. He'd actually left. I never thought it would happen, but it did. He wasn't there anymore; I had the house to myself.

_I'm alone, _I thought, _completely alone. _But this was what I wanted, wasn't it? Hadn't I wished Inuyasha would leave me alone for a while, just so I could have space and time for myself? I'd always wanted him to leave my side at least for a moment so I wouldn't feel like I was being hawkeyed constantly. But now I was wondering if alone time was what I'd really wanted.

I walked back to the stove, feeling around for the pot, wondering how long it would take for Inuyasha to return. I needed to know when Rin's party was. How far away the next time I'd hear her voice was. When I'd be reminded of my older sister Kikyou's face whenever I heard her breathing friend Sesshoumaru's voice and her energetic daughter Rin's laugh—

Suddenly, a pain entered my hand through my skin, boiling my blood and stinging each of my nerves. It was as if I were just stabbed by a fire torch, one with a sharp, molten knife on the end. I pulled away from what must've been the pot and felt my hand before wincing from the pain and cursing from self-blame. I breathed on my hand once, as if air could cure its burn, but ended up grimacing again from my injury's tenderness. Inuyasha had told me repeatedly in the past how I should be careful not to burn myself. Apparently, I hadn't listened all that well.

I turned away from the stove and felt around for the sink, making sure to keep my burnt hand at my side to avoid further contact with other objects. I felt things hard, cold, soft, and rigid until something pokey rubbed against my palm. It hurt even worse than the burn—I must've touched the knife Inuyasha had been using early. After cursing again, I shoved my burnt hand on the counter—feeling intense frustration as the stinging grew worse—until I felt a cloth material against metal. I grabbed it and plunged it down the metal until I felt something wet. Water—either clean or dirty, I'm not sure—soaked into the cloth, and I wiped my opposite hand first in case blood had leaked from my wounds. There must have been, because something thicker than and just as wet as water slid down my hand and onto my wrist. After cleaning up my bloody hand, I placed the washcloth on my burnt one, letting it make the pain worse at first, but then begin to soothe it slowly. _There you go, _I thought. _Now you just have to make the bleeding stop before—_

An unexpected creaking noise came from behind me; it was the sound of a door opening softly, almost sneakily. _Inuyasha gets home, _I finished, my muscles tensing, wondering if he'd come back early. But I'd doubted it, because Inuyasha didn't open doors silently, and I knew that he would've greeted me instantly with a complaint about one of the grocery store workers being an idiot. Since I couldn't see anything, I didn't turn around to check if anyone was there; it would just be a waste of my time and make me believe that something or someone was truly there. Instead of showing concern and scaring myself, I remembered that the house had been built in the eighties, was old anyways, and probably creaked on its own. _Just relax, _I assured myself. _The odds of you being attacked are—_

A feminine, high voice mumbled afar, cutting off my thoughts and officially draining all of the energy out of me. I stiffened, my muscles becoming useless and my breathing difficult, because I recognized the voice. It wasn't a real person, but a fictional character from my favorite television program I recorded on DVR.

The thing that made my stomach churn was that Inuyasha and I hadn't turned on the television all day.

_High! _I wanted to scream. _The odds you being attacked are high, 'Gome! Run, Kagome! Scream with all of your might! Kags, get out of there before you're hurt! Find a way out, Kagome! _Even with my own terrified warnings, my body remained still. I couldn't breathe or think on my own. I couldn't get a brain wave to travel to my muscles, demanding that they move even more quickly than I had at my high school track and swim meets. _Someone is in the house, _my brain kept telling me. I could sense the urgency in my thoughts, the fright of something horrible happening._ Get_ _out now, while you still can! _My muscles… They're useless. _You're useless! Move it!_

I hadn't sensed the air shift, but I could feel an unfamiliar breathing pattern in the room. Then it came closer to me. It kept getting nearer until it was right. On. My neck.

I wanted to scream, to run to the phone, to find the buttons needed to dial nine-one-one. I'd done it before; all I had to do was find the lower right hand button above the last, then the first button out of them all. But I couldn't. I didn't feel like I could do anything at all. It seemed I was frozen in time and space—my vision gone by my own circumstances—with a mysterious, unknown stranger who had invaded my home.

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_A/N: I'm sorry for the cliffhanger—this was supposed to be all about suspense and whatnot. My teacher said I did pretty well, and now I'm wondering what _you _think! :)_


	2. Part II

_Disclaimer: I still don't own Inuyasha. Once again, never happening._

_A/N: This was _supposed _to be my second one-shot, but after reading reviews and being inspired, it shall now be my first two-shot. So, huzzah for a second/last chapter! :D It shall now be INUYASHA'S POV, except in 3rd Person. :P I hope you'll like it, because it shall signal the end of this fic and explain the previous chapter a little more. Thank you to those who reviewed, and I'd like to point out __nightfalcon222__, __DormantShadow__, and __Say0mi Saki_ _(__**check out their stories!**__), whose reviews inspired the story to turn out the way it did, and also helped me with this section where I talk about their marriage and relationship. Thank you, guys! :D (Oh, and thanks to __MegamanSora__, BGuate224, and Inu'sgirl4ever, who reviewed, but didn't give off many suggestions for a possible second chapter. -.-' I STILL LOVE YOU GUYS EQUALLY, THOUGH! :D :D :D)_

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**And the Darkness Consumes All**

_Two-Shot_

_**Part II**_

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"_Shoppers, there is a sale in Aisle 9 on ramen and oden—buy one, get the second half-off,"_ came the monotone voice from overhead, echoing through the grocery store. Inuyasha's mouth watered at the thought of the aforementioned food items, but he managed to focus on getting the things he'd actually _come _for: flour, milk, eggs. So far, he got the milk and the eggs, but the flour… That remained a mystery to him. He carried the items like a real man, with his own two hands, scanning the row's signs, looking for the word _Flour. _So far, there'd been no success in the matter.

Mind wandering to the raven-haired beauty who was no doubt cooking back at their home, Inuyasha sighed, his shoulders growing heavy not from the objects he carried, but the stress confining his life. He remembered how happy they were when dating—how they didn't give a damn, how they were happy with what they had, how it was an equal exchange between them. But, one morning, he awoke to a phone call from his future mother-in-law, hearing her crying about how Kagome's diminishing sight had worsened and she couldn't see anything at all. He went to the hospital to hear the diagnosis:

Kagome Higurashi, due to a few shocks of her optical nerves, had gone blind. She had no cure or chance of recovery; it would take a miracle for her sight to return, the doctor had said, and due to her strong dependency on eyesight, she was rendered useless and weak. Inuyasha, however, loved Kagome more than anyone else, whether she could or could not literally see it, and instantly tackled the challenge of taking care of her for the rest of their lives.

At first, it was invigorating, this feeling that she would always need him, and he could forever be her protector from horny peers and malicious acquaintances. But, time passed; both took the same courses in high school and college in order to stay together, Kagome being forced to get a business degree despite her wishes for an art certificate. They married like they'd always wanted and moved into a nice home, one she'd actually pointed out to him in a magazine before—but she couldn't see it. He brought her to his office, even placed a tracking device on her, just to ensure her safety; his wife had to rely on him for almost everything, and they had no space or time for themselves. She was evidently growing tired of being taken care of; he was obviously becoming exhausted from being her nanny. Both wanted to move back in time, relive the past before "The Loss", before she was then a duty to him and he was a pain to her. Their conversations no longer held meaning, their touches never seen as their last, their lips having taken a vacation from each others' for over two years while their hearts yearned for something that was fading little by little each day.

Slowly, but surely, their marriage, love, and fortitude was falling apart.

Inuyasha loved Kagome. He always would, so it was inevitable that he would stay by her side no matter what. There were many pluses to their relationship as well; they spent so much time together, they felt empty if the slightest apart, a void consuming their core with the absence of their other half. Yes, he was aware she didn't enjoy being babied, but if he so much lessened his guard and took a chance for a moment, something could happen to her—and he'd kill himself if she were gone. And yes, Kagome made it clear that she didn't enjoy him babying her not because of her own selfish reasons, but because it affected him as well—he was seemingly the only sunshine left in her life after her beloved sister had passed, and honestly, he loved clearing her cloudy skies of longevity.

They wished for a better life, for they could not overcome the obstacles the gods had planned for them. But, at the same time, despite all that they'd been through, no matter how much suffering they'd felt on the inside, they would never leave each other behind.

It was just that simple.

Inuyasha sighed—something he found he did a lot when Kagome couldn't hear him—as he finally spotted the flour down the aisle. Grabbing onto it and ignoring the soreness in his arms—cooking had never been kind to his muscles—he marched up to the front of the store, a milk jug's handle wrapped around his wrist, the flour bag in his opposite hand whereas the eggs' Styrofoam carton was carefully handled in his other. As the woman rang him up, he tapped his claws impatiently on the counter, wondering how it could take so long to scan three items. He was eager to go back home to Kagome, already feeling a hole form in his stomach from being separated for too long. He inwardly cursed himself once again, recalling the only reason why he truly left her behind: He wanted alone time. Just to escape from his duty for a hour sounded nice, a relief from the demands of his everyday life with his beloved, but really, it made him all the more tense.

And during his time here, as he thought over their relationship, he had quickly shoved Sesshoumaru's suggestion of a divorce to the back of his mind, having already decided they would die before being separated alive.

Because Inuyasha Taisho would rather kill himself than live without his wife, and Kagome Taisho would die if her husband wasn't by her side.

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Time passed slowly for Inuyasha on the drive home. Something similar to dread was settling in his chest, weighing down his heart, tugging at his lungs, as if telling him Kagome was waiting for him and needed him to be there as soon as possible. Pressing on the gas slightly and increasing his speed to their somewhat secluded home nearby the community woods, Inuyasha recalled his and his half-brother's latest conversation—the one in which took place weeks before, the one that his wife could not recall nor could she remember who even their own family members were.

She really did depend on her sight too much.

_Inuyasha watched as Kagome quite blindly (literally) followed their niece Rin around the yard, relying on the younger's grasp on her hand to not let her trip or run off by accident. Her magnificent blue pools were wide-open as she laughed and played with the adopted child, playing Patty Cake occasionally until Rin declared they were much more mature than that, and switched to an unfair game of Red Rover. Sesshoumaru stood silently by his worker's side, having inherited their father's company whereas Inuyasha settled for a less-demanding job, the reason behind his responsibility to his handicapped wife._

_His brother obviously was not impressed with how he and his wife lived their lifestyle—always being with each other, no time alone, and the lack of affection? _Unbearable_. If Sesshoumaru noticed such a thing, they apparently had issues. And, as his elder sibling spoke, Inuyasha saw more of his point._

"_You really are gaining nothing out of this relationship, Inuyasha," Sess told him stoically. "You do all of the work, treating her as a loved but burdened human being, whereas she must think of you as an overprotective parent. The sparks between you two have almost vanished, and the passion's dead." His cold eyes cut to the oblivious woman being knocked to the ground by his daughter before continuing. "Honestly, she can find a relative or friend to take care of her. She could probably even ask that Kouga fellow at work to help her out." Ignoring Inuyasha's growls at the thought, he stated, "At this rate, with you two being the way you are, there is no hope for your marriage." Then, without any hesitance, _

"_I recommend you follow through with a divorce."_

Inuyasha had considered it at first until the reality of the words caught up with him, and he decided to put that plan away for later. But, just a mere hour away from Kagome made him realize some things, some _important _things, the things that had made him feel like a total bastard for even mulling over the idea of a divorce. He now knew he still loved her, was still _in _love with her, and right now, they were having an obstacle they could not overcome. They were distressed, both in pain, but if they had each other, he thought they could deal with it—that they could at least find the will to try to be happy.

As Inuyasha approached their street, the void within him grew to the point where he felt nauseated, not nostalgic, to even acknowledging its existence. He tempered with the heating and cooling of his car, hoping the distraction would take away from the monster eating him from the inside-out. But there was an even greater distraction than the blast of his fans whipping his cheeks.

The unfamiliar motorcycle in the front of their house, topped off with an slightly opened front door.

Inuyasha's mind hadn't registered that he'd swerved onto his own lawn and flung open the driver's door. He didn't take his keys out of the ignition or even closed the door after him as he sprinted to the porch, his blood pounding in his ears—both from anger and anxiety. Over his heartbeat, he could hear Kagome's favorite cartoon playing in the living room, the one she'd listen to while he'd tell her what was actually happening. Fury boiled inside of him, knowing full well she did not know her way around the house. _Someone's here, _he thought, _and Kagome let them _in_! _Then he caught the scent he despised most.

"Kagome!" he yelled, approaching the kitchen at a steadfast speed. He passed by numerous portraits—some of Kagome's old artwork, pictures of their dating days, their wedding photo, Kikyou and the other Higurashi, Rin as a baby, Sesshoumaru being an ass—but paid them no mind like he would have before. At the moment, envy and ferocity was fogging his mind and reasoning. Was she really cheating on him?

Finally, as he reached the opening to the room, every muscle in his body straightened, his nerves going haywire while his throat went indescribably dry and his temples numbed.

Kagome stood stiller than her husband, stiff as a board, her eyes staring unfocusedly into space as terrified tears escape their sockets. Her tank top straps had been moved, leaving her shoulders bare, while the bottom had been pushed up, revealing her flat stomach well. Despite her loss of eyesight, her emotions rang true within her empty gaze to her husband, alerting him that the position she was in was not her choice at all.

Inuyasha's colleague smirked, tapping his pocketknife against Kagome's cheek carelessly, though she didn't dare flinch, unlike Inuyasha, who seethed fire. The coworker stood coolly behind the blind woman, an arm wrapped around her torso and biceps, shielding her from the little chance of escape she had. His aura was full of confidence, his gaze fearless as he greeted, "Hey there, mutt. Missing your woman already?"

Inuyasha only hissed one word: _"Kouga."_

The intruder's grin grew wider as the blade then rested against Kagome's delicate skin. "Most people wouldn't recognize me with a ski mask on," he mused, and at the remaining of the cool metal against her face and breeze across her bare shoulders and belly, Kagome whimpered, her fingers twitching as she felt around on the nearby counter for help of some kind. Kouga gave a crooked smile in amusement, making Inuyasha clench his fists in pure antagonism.

Then, as soon as Kagome let out a bloodcurdling scream of pain, it was all over.

When being questioned by authorities later on, the witnesses would say that they had no clue of their acquaintance's intentions, because he'd been killed the moment Kagome had grabbed the pot behind them and tilted in over, burning his entire back, releasing Kagome, and landing on his own knife. He bled to death while suffering from second-degree burns on their kitchen floor.

As soon as his arm left her, Kagome's feet gave out on her, and she slipped on the liquid below. Her leg hurt somewhat from the jerk, but it didn't hurt her as much as her head colliding with the temple, most specifically, her temple. If the job hadn't already been done, Inuyasha would've killed Kouga, so instead, he immediately rushed to his old love, who-knows-what-now wife's side, only somewhat relieved that she was still breathing—but wouldn't open her eyes. He needed to see her emotions, make sure she was fine, because—

His breath caught.

_He loved her._

It'd taken him this long to really actually remember that. Yes, he'd acknowledged it, but never so truly, as if he was realizing it for the first time all over again—as if it were that powerful, that life-changing, like if he didn't tell her soon, she'd slip from his fingers just as she almost did a few moments ago. The moment she would open her eyes was the moment he'd tell her that every day for the rest of their lives.

Because not only did relief shine through them, but they focused solely on Inuyasha's golden ones—something she hadn't done since The Loss.

It was then that they kissed for the first time in a long time, and for a long time for the first time.

The instant Inuyasha had experienced his epiphany, Kagome had opened her eyes, and literally saw the world as it really was all over again. She could see colors, shapes, lines—everything she couldn't before.

Her miracle had came to her after all—it just arrived last moment.

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_A/N: I honestly didn't want to make Kouga the bad guy—really. But, sadly, my first idea for magically bringing back Kikyou to life or turning Fluffy evil didn't go as well as I would've liked, and Kouga seemed like the next scapegoat I could use, you know? I honestly liked it. o.o But, if you are wondering, _yes, _Kagome's fall shocked her optical nerves like they had long ago, and her sight has returned, bringing their struggle to an end and, if you haven't noticed, lightening their relationship immensely. (And people do lose their sight like that, by the way, though it's rare.)_

_Well, I hope you enjoyed reading this story, and hopefully I hit a few heartstrings with the emotions and my horribly cheesy ending! ;P Don't be afraid to review and tell me what you think—I love hearing all kinds of criticism, thoughts, etc., so review and favorite if you wish! :D And if you enjoyed this type of writing—suspense and dramatic, along with a twinge of mystery—check out __**CHAPTER TWO of the **_**InuYasha**_** fic "LIKE VINES" by The Thorne**__! ^.^ Honestly? One of the best fugging things I've ever read. XD_


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